As I Wake
by CreepGirl
Summary: An OC who awakens during a brutal storm in an unknown land without any recollection of how she got there or who she is. How did she end up here? Why doesn't she know anything about herself? Will she survive long enough to find out? Follow her story as she's determined to discover who she really is.
1. Chapter 1

If my summary somehow drawn you in, welcome!

**Disclaimer:**I obviously don't own Naruto. Wish I did, but don't. But I do own my lovely OC.

Anyway, happy reading.

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I gasped as I inhaled what seemed like my first ever breath. My eyelids were closed but I heard and felt the freezing rain drop on my goose bumped skin. The furious wind absorbed what little body heat I possessed as my skin turned to ice. Thunder echoed in the distance, one boom after another. _Where could I be?_

My eyelids remained closed in thought of what was in front of me. Someone possibly holding me captive or worse, I could be abandoned in the middle of nowhere with half my limbs gone. Granted, there was no feeling. No pain, but that doesn't rule out the thought that I might be in danger.

Slowly, my eyes fluttered open. It was just as dark in the real world as it was behind my eyelids. It was obvious now that I was not being held captive. There were no ropes or chains bound to me. No one was holding a knife against my throat. Nothing was here but my limp body leaning against a giant tree. Fallen trees surrounded me everywhere. The sky was brewing a nasty storm, with black clouds and furious winds. There was only me in this pitch black forest.

_Wait, me? Who's me? What's me? What's my name! Why couldn't I remember my name? _

I realized that there was no recollection of anything. Nothing about who I was or how I got here. My memory was blank.

I pushed the idea out, temporarily, as I examined myself. With what little light was provided, I first looked at my hands. They seemed fine, all ten long and slender fingers present. Checking my legs, relief washed over me when two unbroken legs stared back at me. _One, Two_. They're skinny, long and with a few scratches, but nothing looked wrong. Slowly examining the rest of my body, the body that I don't remember having that was, everything seemed to be in check. It was like relearning about yourself all over again. That mat of thick, brown hair covered my head and a little scar I never knew existed on my pinky finger. _How could I forget everything about myself, even my own name? Why was there no memory?!_

Feeling woozy, I looked at my arms and realized that my right arm was bleeding. The wound didn't look deep but it was still oozing. It might be because it was so dark but as I stared and squinted, it seemed as if my blood looked darker, almost black. _No that couldn't be possible…_

The sky brightened as lightning stroke, making me jump. It was now raining even harder than before. I must have hidden myself under this tree as a desperate attempt to get shelter, but my white, long T-shirt was soaked. Even drenched to the bone, I am not emotional. I did not feel panicked, but there should be panic and fear, right? All my memories have been erased and yet screams weren't filling my lungs. I should be frightened but I just felt eerily calm.

But now isn't the time to worry about that. There were more important things to be concerned about like how the hell I'm was going to get out of here. Who knew how long I've gone without proper food and water. Without a doubt, if I stayed here, this cyclone of a storm would end my life. I needed to find that somewhere safe, now!

Slowly, my desperate legs scooted themselves underneath my body and with all my strength, I pushed myself into an upright position. With the tree's aid and looking, literally, like a tree hugger, I was able to stand. My body turned toward the direction it wanted to go, which was apparently left. I let go of the supporting tree. After my first steps forward, my small success ended with failure as my body and I, completely crumbled to the ground.

_Curse my wobbly legs!_ When my brain finally conjured up a plan, my legs wouldn't corporate. Failure was not an option. Even with mud all over my legs and hands, determination was in my veins. Trying once again, I placed my hands underneath my body and after some struggle; I was finally able to stand. With so much of my energy already gone, I put what little was left to leaving this somewhat sheltered tree. Slowly, placing one foot in front of another, I walked away from the tree. Seeing me move only ten feet was surely an accomplishment, but boy was it pouring. Within minutes, I've been completely exposed to Mother Nature's wrath. My hair was clung to my face, my teeth were chattering, and worse of all; I had no idea where to go.

But those excuses were nothing to me. Even with small strides, there was distance between myself and that giant tree. My bare feet were covered with mud and no visible skin peaked through my feet or ankles. Who knew how many layers of filth and what-not were on them. Continuing, hope rose as I slowly walked towards my destination. _Which was where exactly? No damn clue. _Over and over, a recording in my head repeated…L_eft foot, right foot, left foot, right foot, left…right…_

Ignoring the pouring rain and the lightning knocking down trees, I kept my focus on my feet.

As time went on, it was getting harder to move. My legs were being disobedient children again, not listening to a thing I said. My heart was working overtime, begging me to stop. My lungs were pleading to stop! At this moment, I'm huffing and wheezing. Moving on sheer will-power wasn't going to last forever but that couldn't stop me now! _Move!_

Concentration continued on my feet with the same chant on replay: _Left, right, left, right, left…._

But, I collapsed. My feet gave out. My heart gave out, my lungs. And, I gave out.

_Will this truly be it? Was my life going to end without there ever being a beginning? I could never restart my life or have a future. Never figure out how I got here or give hell to whoever threw me here!_ To my dismay, this storm would end my life.

Sitting on my knees, I looked up at the sky. _Man, why was there so much rain? _I heard tree branches snapping, the wind's fury whistling, and absolutely no signs of life. There was so much destruction to this land. My fists clenched in my lap. _What have I done to deserved this…?_

Black spots blurred my vision. The effects on my exertion were crashing in waves. My eyes closed as I began to take my fate. But, my concentration towards the crying sky broke when I heard soft footsteps behind me. Slowly, I turned my head and was in shock at what stood before me. Seeing a pair of human feet, I moved my eyes vertically and stared up at a man who was looking down at me.

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**This is my first ever story. I feel like such a noob. Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer.**

**"The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step"**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:**I obviously don't own Naruto. Wish I did, but don't. But I do own my lovely OC.

**Warning: **My OC has a bit of a potty mouth, someone bring the soap.

Anyway, happy reading.

* * *

**Chapter two: Curse this Nonchalant Man!**

… I moved my eyes vertically and stared up toward a man looking down at me.

_It was a man? Why would he be here in the middle of nowhere in the motherland of storms?_ My eyes couldn't believe what they saw.

He was tall, about six feet. Wore a weird outfit, some kind of uniform I presumed. From bottom to top, he wore blue worn-out sandals that looked like they needed some repair. His pants, blue as well, had a white and blue band around his right leg. Of course, he would be wearing an ordinary long sleeved blue shirt as well. Whoever this person was, his uniform doesn't have any style. His shirt was covered by a sage vest supplying many snaps and compartments. I could only guess the possibilities each pocket contained. Most likely inside were different knives, any one of them willingly to be the lucky winner to slice my throat.

His facial appearance was by far the most intriguing feature. Well let's face it (no pun intended), there wasn't much competition compared to the rest of his outfit. A navy blue mask covered his chin, mouth, and nose, along with what looked like a headband covering his left eye. The headband had a silver plate with some kind of swirly engraving on it. His only visible eye, his right, looked bored, tired, and serious, all at the same time. It was beyond me why he looked so calm. With a crop of silver-grey hair to top it off, that completed his look.

We had a staring contest for what felt like ages. He must be cold and drenched but didn't acknowledged it. _What was he thinking about? He_ was _so hard to read!_ Usually people could read another's expression but right now, that's complete crap because I couldn't read shit off this guy. _Curse this nonchalant man!_

My body sat motionlessly as he slowly, stepped towards me. Once again, I was not feeling any emotions, nothing mentally. At least panic should rise within me, but my body stayed still, I stayed still.

Call me crazy, but I felt quite the opposite. Not terrified, instead intrigued. This man was a complete mystery, but he was the first sign of life I'd seen since awakening under that damn tree. At this moment, I could be in danger but anything was better than sitting helpless. Either way, I would be on my way to the afterlife.

The Mystery Man was just a foot away as I continued to stare up at him. Curious of his next action, I waited. I was sure he would pull a knife or some sort of weapon out of that convenient vest of his, but which?

He opened his mouth and I anticipated what he might say. Maybe it would be demanding like 'Come with me' or maybe he would be blunt and say 'I'm going to kill you'. Maybe he would say…

"Hey", the Mystery Man spoke.

_Say… Wait, what. Hey? Hey!?_ _We're in a storm in who knew where and at any given moment, we could get struck by_ _lightning or hit by a fucking tree and all he said was 'Hey!?' Were my ears failing me too?_

"Hey", he repeated again as he squatted down, now at eye level with me.

How was I supposed to reply to that? 'Oh, hey there, how's it going?' If he hadn't noticed we're in the heart of this monster storm! _Curse this nonchalant man!_

I opened my mouth to reply, but my throat was either dry or I was a mute because no sound left my lips. Maybe I should had practiced talking aloud before. Go figure someone would be stupid enough to be walking around during a storm, let alone who would plan to make small talk. I assumed that if anyone somehow found me, they would have killed me instantly. But, how wrong could I be! This fool wanted to make small talk before he killed. Why doesn't he just dig my grave while he was at it?

As I foolishly tried to speak again, Mystery Man unsnapped one of the pockets to his vest and began to pull something out. I knew it was some kind of weapon but still I flinched, _stupid reflex_. I was ready for whatever came next even if my reflexes wanted to twitch. He continued to pull out… a handkerchief from his pocket.

Immediately, I jarred my head back and scrunched up my face in disbelief. _What does the Mystery Man need with a handkerchief? Maybe he wanted to blow his nose or clean his hands before he dirtied them with my blood. _

Completely out of his pocket, he took the handkerchief and handed it to me. If I wasn't confused before, I really was now. He simply placed it into my filthy hands. The handkerchief was just as boring as this guy's uniform, plain white with no designs on it.

With no clue what he wanted me to do with it; I just looked at him. He must have read the puzzlement on my face because he took the handkerchief back.

"It's for that wound on your arm. It looks pretty deep and you don't want it to get infected", he said as he began to wrap the plain white handkerchief on my dirty, emaciated arm.

"There much better", he claimed proudly, as if he felt accomplished that he helped a poor, half-dead girl out.

All of this was just too strange. This man magically appeared and instead of killing me, he helped me out. _What. The. Hell._

Still squatting he asked, "So where'd you come from, it looks like you were escaping from something".

Even if I could talk, there wouldn't be an answer for him. My useless memory didn't recollect anything, especially where I came from. My super computer in my head felt as if a virus completely wiped out its hard drive.

I shrugged my shoulders because, pathetically, that was all I was capable of.

"I see, well let's get you out of here. It isn't safe for either of us right now."

From his face, there was no need to show him that I was exhausted. He could already tell how disheveled I looked. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that I couldn't move anywhere on my own. Without even consulting with me, he picked me up. But, I don't do anything, not even struggle as he carried me, bridal style, to wherever this strange man's mind was planning to take me.

As he walked, beyond his face, I could see the sky. The black swirling clouds before were beginning to calm down. The sky cleared has birds began to chirp, the sign of survivors. Everything was becoming peaceful again. The rain wasn't coming down in bucket anymore, just a mist remained. It was getting brighter now. It felt as if my spirits were brighter too, not focused on death but on survival. I was actually going to find a safe shelter after all.

I tried to communicate by mouthing the words. _Who are you?_

He looked down at me and smiled behind his mask, "Just call me Kakashi".

_Ka-ka-shi._ I mouthed the words silently before my heavy eyelids began to close and see black all over again.

_Curse this nonchalant man…_

* * *

**Where will Kakashi take this girl? **

**Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer. Hope you are enjoying it so far.**

**"We just did an awesome job of not dying." - John Green  
**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto. Just my OC.

**Warning: **My OC curses, oops.

Happy reading.

* * *

**_Chapter 3: Beginnings _**

_Are you freaking kidding me!?_ Black filled my vision as my eyelids were closed, again! If once wasn't enough, apparently, I had to go through this tragic experience a second time. At least it wasn't cold and I didn't hear rain. But, I refused to go through that bull crap again.

I opened my eyes and sighed with relief to see that I was not in a monster storm. This time I was actually indoors… in a bed? _Great! Where am I this time?_

I sat up and searched for some clues. It would be nice to have some idea where I was.

The walls were white with no hanging pictures. The door was to my left and the window to my right, both closed. The window was drawn closed by a flimsy white curtain. So far, nothing provided any clues.

All that was left was a nightstand and an IV bag on a metal pole. Doing a double take, my eyes opened wide. _Wait, IV? Why is that in here?_ Looking down at my left wrist, there was an IV tube jabbed into my skin. _What the? This is so frustrating! It would be nice to know for once what's going on, where I am… or what I am._

I sighed and plopped back onto the bed. My memories still haven't returned. Still as blank as the ceiling above me. _Why hasn't my memory returned, yet? What is wrong with me?_

This room was as boring as Mystery Man's clothes. Speaking of which, where was that man? Kakashi, wasn't that his name?

As if on cue, Mystery Man, I meant Kakashi, walked in.

"So I see that you're finally awake. You have been asleep for the past three days", he simply stated.

I tried to reply and convey my annoyance to him, but instead of words leaving my lips, violent coughs did instead. I thought I was going to hack up a lung.

Still coughing, Kakashi kindly gave me water and I gulped it down. After a few moments of calming from my coughing episode, I mouthed the words, 'Where am I?'

"You're at a hospital in the Fire Country, in a village called Konoha".

'Ko-no-ha?', I mouthed the foreign word with each syllable.

He nodded, "Konoha", as he simultaneously revealed the world beyond the flimsy white curtain.

The view outside was unbelievable. Sun shined on the trees and buildings. Children were playing ball in the street, giggling and looking like they have nothing in the world to worry about. Adults were shopping in outdoor markets that looked fun to explore. In the sky, birds were flying high, looking down on this beautiful village. Something within me had the desire to run outside like a mindless fool and explore the all-too-new scenery. But, instead, I was stuck in this hospital bed, helpless.

Kakashi broke my trance, "So has your memory returned?"

Sadly looking at him, I shook my head.

To get my mind off of the unfortunate situation, he changed the subject, "By the way, let me fully introduce myself. My name is Hatake Kakashi".

'Ka-ka-shi' I silently pronounced as a nurse walked in.

"Hello Sweetheart, I'm your nurse. I'm here to check up on you and take a veil of blood," she smiled politely.

She looked and sounded very sweet, even though her voice had a slight annoying twang to it. I simply nodded and watched her put the equipment together. Kakashi causally folded his arms across his chest and propped his leg against the corner wall. He stared at the nurse, interested, as if waiting for something to pop out. _Why does he look like that?_

"Now this might pinch a little Sweetheart. It's best if you look away".

But I didn't want to look away. I wanted to see every move she made as she drew each drop of blood from my body.

The nurse placed the needle into my skin and began to pull the syringe, extracting my blood. My eyes opened wide as the blood collected into the container. My blood was black, the same color as the wound on my arm during the storm. Even if my mind was a jumbled mess, I knew what color blood should be and this was not it.

The nurse finished taking my blood and she smiled, realizing that I looked concerned, "No worries Sweetheart, I'll take this to the lab and examine it. All you need to do now is relax and rest".

_Yeah, relax and rest. Easier said than done and why the hell was she calling me Sweetheart? Did I look like a Sweetheart or is that what she calls all her patients. For her information my name isn't Sweetheart it's… dammit._

After the nurse left, Kakashi promised that he would check up on me later. Alone once again, I gazed out the window and sighed. The world looked so breath-taking. Temptation boiled inside me to just jump out that window and experience the freedom. It was awful in this stuffed up white cube.

Deciding that I couldn't stand it anymore, I ripped off my IV tube and threw my legs over the side of the bed. My right foot placed down first and slowly easing my weight onto it, my other foot followed. Pushing with all my strength, I stood up and walked out the deathly room. My legs were stiff, but they seemed to be doing their job.

* * *

Finally reaching to the top floor, I opened the door to the roof. I walked to the far edge and leaned on the railing. The view was more amazing out here. The sun was setting as everything darkened. The sky remained a beautiful mix of purples and pinks. As if a child was playing with watercolors, colors blended into one anyone, leaving a masterpiece.

I inhaled a deep breath as the wind picked up. The fresh smell cleared my lungs. Cleansed my body of all negative energy. I felt more rejuvenated. I felt free.

My concentration broke when I heard the door slam. Kakashi stood behind me. _Figures, he probably wants to reprimand me for leaving my room._

"The view is very nice from up here…" he stated as he joined me, leaning on the railing. "… but being in bed and resting would be smart".

Well that wasn't as harsh as I planned it to be. None the less, I ignored his request and continued to gaze at the sunset. Going back into that room was like putting a bird in a cage, it wasn't right. A bird needed its freedom. Plus, this sunset was too beautiful to look away from.

"I figured you would ignore me." He sighed, then turned to me, "The nurses are still doing tests on the blood sample. All they know is that there is a high amount of oxygen, iron, and some kind of enzyme that they have yet to identify, but besides that, everything else is still a mystery. They have no idea why your blood is so dark".

I registered the information. It was no surprise that there were more questions and no answers.

He continued, "But based on your dental and physical, you are around 14 years old, 155 cm, 40kg and you can't speak because your vocal chords have been damaged. The examiners predict that your voice will return in time but no clue when. Also, the muscle work and patterns that you have only occur in people who are shinobi".

My head quickly swerved to stare at Kakashi. The age, height, weight and even the damaged vocal chords weren't shocking me, it was this shinobi business. _What the heck is that, some kind of disease?_

'Shi-no-bi?' I mouthed to him, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, shinobi, a ninja", he pointed to the engraved metal plate that covered his eye.

He began to walk away. I don't question his departure as I continued to think. Since when were there ninjas? Maybe that's what Kakashi was wearing. It wasn't a lame outfit concocted by fashionably blind man but a ninja uniform. The metal engraving must be a symbol for this village. Does that mean there are others out there? Different symbols that represented different people, different kinds of fighters?

Moments later, my ears perked as Kakashi reappeared behind me. Reappeared not in the sense of walking back towards me, but in a way that didn't make sense. It was in a materialized matter. One second he wasn't there, the next he was.

Kakashi instantaneously pulled something out of his vest and threw it at me. Acting on my reflexes, I nimbly caught the object. Shocked, I looked down to see a strange weapon in my hand. It was pointed on one end with a handle and cloth wrapped around on the other end. _What in the world is this? I didn't even know it was coming at me. Everything happened so suddenly._

"That is a kunai knife. It's used in short and far combat" he explained.

'How?'

Kakashi walked back over, "I don't know but this proves that you did have ninja training of some sort".

_How could I be a shinobi? I don't even know how to fight. How can a body as weak as mine fight? There's no way. There has to be an explanation to all of this. _

"Since you are completely recovered, tomorrow I would like to test you to see your level of skills. After, we can meet with the Hokage to report your situation. He will be the one who decides where you will be staying."

'Hokage?' _What's with all these new words!_ It was giving me a headache.

"A Hokage is a very powerful ninja who is also the leader of this village".

All I do was shake my head. This wasn't right. Hokage? Shinobi? What was all of this? I did't belong here! How could he just say that I had a possibility of staying here? The Hokage wouldn't allow this. I was a stranger, an outsider.

'Out-sid-er'. It was so frustrating that I couldn't speak.

He grabbed my shoulders and stared intently into the eyes, "You are going to meet the Hokage tomorrow. You need to be placed in a safe environment".

His one visible eye glared at me. His seriousness radiating off him. He was acting like he cares…

I pushed him and walked away. _Why do I want to do that? I'm not a ninja. Who does he think I am?_

"Don't walk away. Just let me talk to you; convince you that this will be good for you", he calmly calls from behind me.

Continuing to walk back to my ominous hospital room, I placed my hand on the doorknob and began to turn it. If this guy thought he was going to convince me that I should go though some testing and meet the Big Honcho, then he had another thing coming. _What a stupid man._

"It's okay to be scared of your powers", he simply stated.

Stopping in my place, I rewound and played the words. _He thinks I'm afraid of my powers? Is he fucking crazy? I don't have any powers to begin with. How can I be afraid of something that I don't even have?_ I impulsively threw the kunai or whatever it was called, from before, at Kakashi and turned back around to open the door.

It was not even fully opened before Kakashi was behind me and slammed the door closed. His heat radiating onto my back. His breath on my neck.

_Is he kidding me?_ Quickly, I turned around to push him away from me, but he had already moved to the other end of the balcony. How the hell does he move that quickly? It was like he just magically appeared twenty feet away from me. It was just like before, his little ninja trick.

"Why don't you just listen to what I have to say? We want to perform a test to learn about you. Don't you want to learn more about yourself?"

Fiercely, I shook my head and waved my hands to signal that this was enough bull shit. I was acting like a heartless bitch but why the hell did I have to take this crap. Just what exactly was I doing here? I didn't belong here! I shouldn't be helped by these people. I wasn't from this village. There was no need to take any test or see any macho powerful leader. No way could I be a ninja. Not this weak, pathetic little girl that this guy did some community service by plucking her up from the hell hole that she came from. I was nothing. Enough is enough.

Annoyed, I turned back around to the door. It wasn't like I could yell at him or anything. Reaching for the knob for the second time, something grabbed my wrist, well someone. I looked up to see the same pain in the ass.

Kakashi began to plead. "Please, let me test you tomorrow. What's the harm in that? If you're not a ninja, then you can leave the village, no questions asked…okay?."

I sighed. It was like being stuck between a rock and a hard place. I mean I've had an attitude with him this whole time. The least I could do was take this stupid test. He did save me after all. Then he can leave me alone and I can move on, away from here, away from this village.

Reluctantly, I nodded my head in surrender.

Kakashi smiled underneath his mask, "Great, now go get some rest".

I obliged and tiredly opened the door.

"See you tomorrow. Seven o' clock sharp at the front desk, Quorra", he said.

_What did he call me?_ Quickly, I turned around but he disappeared, gone without a trace. _Damn ninjas!_

The wind blew on my face and ruffled up my hospital gown as I silently said:

'Quo-rra….'

* * *

**So she finally has a name, or does she? Does Kakashi know something she doesn't?**

**Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer. Hope you are enjoying it so far.**

**"What I actually want to call you is a hell of a lot more unprintable than your name" - Cassandra Clare  
**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto. Just my OC.

**Warning: **My OC curses, quite a bit.

Happy reading.

* * *

**_Chapter 4: The Bell Test_**

_'Quo-rra….'_

It was the following morning and the word still echoed in my mind. _Quorra… What is that? Does that mean something I am not aware of?_ I looked up at that blank white ceiling, repeating the syllables in my head. The word floated around above me, the letters came to life before my eyes.

_Why would he; why would Kakashi call me this? Who's Quorra?_ My mind was still as blank as it was on day one. Discouraging, but lying in bed wasn't going to solve anything. It was time to answer some questions. I needed to ask him why he called me that.

I leapt out of the hospital bed. On the nightstand, there was a fresh pair of clothes with a note on top. The note said:

**Good morning,**

**Here are some comfortable clothes. Fighting in a **

**hospital gown isn't very practical.**

**Meet me at the training grounds just southeast **

**of the hospital.**

**~K.H.**

_At the training grounds?_ I looked down from the note and saw a plain white T-shirt with capris that were similar to Kakashi's. I took the clothes and changed in the bathroom.

After changing, I signed out of the hospital and took my first steps outside. It was just as lovely out as it was yesterday.

_Wait, which way is southeast? Does he expect me to be a human compass?_ Feeling like a complete idiot, I walked around the premises. So far no training grounds but a school, shopping center, and playground came into view. _  
_

In a distance, there was a huge field with random nick-knacks like targets and posts and guessed that was the training grounds. _Finally! I found it! Look at my navigation skills, sharp as a tack._ Smiling at my own stupidity, I walked southeast to the site.

Kakashi was nowhere in sight. _Where is he? I assumed that he would be here to greet me. _

"Good morning", said a voice behind me.

Startled, I jumped and whipped around to face him. _These stupid reflexes! He's late! How professional._ I said my good morning by giving a half-smile.

"Are you ready for your tests?"

Simply, my replied with a quick nod. Cutting to the chase, I wanted this Quorra mystery to be solved. Slowly, so he could understand me, I pronounced each syllable, _'Why did you call me Quorra?'_

As if he couldn't understand me, he explained the tests, "We are going to be doing a wide variety of exercises. Each will be on different aspects and will gradually get harder. In the end, there will be an ultimate test which I will explain later. If, of course, you make it that far".

Obviously he was ignoring me. If I wanted to get any answers, I needed to be more forceful.

Grabbing the collar of his vest, I pulled him towards my chest, so that we met eye to eye. Feeling annoyed but determined, I silently ask again, _'Why did you call me that?'_

Nonchalant as always, he looked me dead in the eye. He didn't look mad and didn't rip my grasp off of him. He didn't even attempt to pull away. But he does say, "I'll answer whatever questions you have if you past the tests."

My annoyed expression changed to shock and I quickly let go of his vest. No ideas conjured up on how to pass these tests. Only ninjas could pass, which clearly I was not, but I understood that I needed to succeed to discover more about myself. _I need to know and won't give up so easily!_

Ultimately, I nodded my head, firmly, as if saying _'you're on!'_

He gave me the same stern face back, "Good. Now we'll begin with something simple, let's see how well you can throw at a target."

He pulled a kunai knife from one of his trusty o' compartments and threw it at me, landing at my feet. "Let's see how good your aim is," and he pointed to the target just yards away. It was a simple target with blue, yellow, and red being the center target.

Grasping the cold metal weapon in my hand, I walked towards the target. _I need to hit this target._ If I so happened to have any talent, any magical abilities hidden within me, they needed to freaking come out. Raising the kunai knife up, I aimed and threw it with all my strength. Hearing it made a _PING_, I realized my eyes were closed and I opened them to see that the kunai didn't hit the red dot; it wasn't even on the target board. _Where in the world did it go?_ The red cloth of the handle caught my eye and saw that the knife perfectly hit smack middle of the tree, the tree next to the tree with the fucking target on it. So much for magical abilities, I couldn't even hit the right tree let alone the fucking red dot. _Dayum!_

"Try again and concentrate", said the wise old bat behind me.

Grunting in frustration, I walked over to the tree and pulled the kunai out of it. Walking back to my position, I concentrated as Kakashi suggested. _Come on, I know you can do it, just hit the stupid target! _I aimed, threw, and… hit the target? No, but I did hit the tree that had the target. _Well at least I am improving._ I sighed and pulled the knife out of the tree. _Well, there is always the saying 'third times a charm'. Let's just see how accurate that bullshit is._

I closed my eyes and tried to feel the target in front of me. I stared at the prize, that stupid little red dot and made it my prey. _Just breathe and concentrate. _I inhaled sharply, aimed, and threw the kunai knife. Kakashi made a 'mph' sound from behind me. I saw the knife hit blue of the target. I couldn't help but smile. _Yes, that's most likely pathetic in ninja terms, but in ordinary girl terms, I think I did a pretty damn good job._

I wanted to try to do a better job when, "Alright, that's enough. Let's test you on something else." Kakashi interrupted me.

Although I wanted to perfect my poor throwing skills, I wasn't complaining.

"Now, let's see your agility. See the hospital back over there? I want you to run as fast as you can. Run there and back. I'll time you."

_Running? I never tried running before. How dumb does that sound? But, I have to do better._ I took my starting stance, which for me was just standing there like a clueless person.

"Ready? Go."

With that I began to run, or attempted to run, it was more like a jog or perhaps what a fat kid's attempt at running was as he tried to chase down an ice cream cart._ I feel like an awkward duck!_

Trying to fix my pace, my heart pounded in my chest. Already I could drop dead. _Man! I am so out of shape._ My lungs yelled at me to stop and to take a nap under ones of those trees. But, gradually, I began to like this for some reason. The pain in my chest and the adrenaline pumping in my body. For some reason, it was reviving.

I pumped my arms and moved my legs faster. My iced blood was pumping through me, warming me up and giving me power. It felt like I was in complete control for the first time.

In no time at all, what took me fifteen minutes to walk, only took a few minutes to run to the hospital wall. As if I had to touch the wall of the hospital to prove that I had made it the whole distance, I tapped the wall and ran back. My lungs were still yelling, like they being fried, but my legs just wanted to go and go fast. Everything around me seems to be a blur. Both from the fact that I was running that fast and also because I was so focused, so concentrated on the goal ahead of me. It felt like I was in a tunnel with only one way out. To make this tunnel more interesting, someone thought it would be funny to set the tunnel into flames so that I was running in the direction of my only escape. I was aware this speed would be too much for some people, but I should have realized by now that I was not any ordinary person. I was certainly different.

In record time, I made it back to Kakashi and screeched to a stop. I placed my hands on my knees and bent over as I tried to refill my lungs with deprived oxygen. Looking up at Kakashi, he still wore his stone-cold expression, but his only visible eyebrow arched so that meant he must be intrigued, right?

Waiting for him to respond, I began to jump up and down to show that I was ready for more. I was ready for anything that he had to throw at me. _Bring it bitch!_

"We will start another test now", he calmly stated.

Giving him a dirty look, I straightened up and listened for my next test.

With that, we continued our day with many, many different exercises. When he said that we were doing a variety of tests, boy, he was not exaggerating. _Holy __**shit**__!_ I ran, jumped, and rolled. I even attempted to climb a fucking tree! Of course _that_ went very well. Kakashi even made me spar with him. He went easy on me and still he kicked my scrawny ass. After that and much more, I was very tired. _How much more does he want me to do?_

"Well, ready for more?" He asked me as if this was just the warm up.

I answered him by sticking my tongue out at him. He was trying to kill me.

"Good, but before we continue, I want to explain something to you. Let's walk to that tree over there," he said as he pointed to the tree behind me.

_Thank you, Almighty!_ We walked to the tree and I collapsed. Kakashi leaned against the tree. I stared at him, curiously.

"I want to explain a few things to you before we go any farther." He looked down to see my approval and I responded with my usual nod.

"Remember when I was telling you yesterday about ninjas? And how they are called shinobi? Well shinobi aren't just ordinary people. Each shinobi has something called chakra, a form of energy in all living organisms and naturally in every individual to some degree. Long story short, the amount of chakra in shinobis are greatly significant compared to the amount that is in an average individual. In shinobis, there are different types of techniques used with the use of chakra, which allows an individual to perform a wide variety of abilities. Just to scratch the surface, there are ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu."

_Well I'm lost. I mean, I understand that these shinobi people have this thing called chakra and with this they can do special abilities but what does that have to do with anything._

Continuing, "Now when I was telling you your health record back on the roof of the hospital, I didn't mention something."

Interested, I looked up at him. _What did he not mention to me? Why wouldn't he tell me something when I am at this desperate state in wanting to learn every little detail about myself?_

As if he read my mind, "I didn't mention this yesterday because you were learning so many new terms that I didn't want to confuse you any further, but what the doctors found was that you have a very low amount of chakra. It's slightly higher than the usual amount found in an average civilian, but not by much. That's why I truly wanted to test you because you had such unique blood work and muscle components that obviously point towards you being a shinobi but compared to your chakra levels, they didn't match up. They didn't make any sense."

I sighed. This was getting harder to figure out. Why does it have to be so complicated?

"They don't make any sense unless you mainly use taijutsu. There are different kinds of techniques. Ninjutsu involves transformations. Genjutsu, illusions. But, Taijutsu is different because it usually requires little chakra use whatsoever; stamina is all that is needed. Taijutsu is more about hand-to-hand combat and barely any complicated techniques."

_Taijutsu, huh? But what does that mean for me? Is he saying that I have taijutsu? That I am really a ninja after all?_

"As a final test, I want to test you the same way I test all my students. It is called the bell test." He started to walk towards the center of the field again and I obediently followed him.

"I will modify it slightly because you do not know all the shinobi techniques but see this bell right here?" He rose the bell up, "all I want you to do is to try to take this away from me."

_And how does he suppose I do that?_

"You can use whatever techniques and weapons that you have." He handed me a kunai knife and a shuriken. "All you have to do is get the bell. How you do it is up to you."

As I agreed to this challenge, we get into our fighting positions and I tried to conjure up a plan. _This is my final test and the results from this could change my life. I want that bell!_

"You have until noon, good luck." With that he took a kunai knife out of his vest and threw it at me.

Instinctively, I blocked it with my own kunai and began to charge at him. _What should I do? How am I going to take the bell away from him? He beat my little punk ass before when we were sparring. He's going to do the same this time!_

I ran and hit him with all I got, but he simply blocked me as if he was swatting a fly. Hoping to knock him down, I dropped down and used my leg and attempted to swipe him off his feet but he jumped back, avoiding the attack.

Still determined, I continued to fight with kicks, punches and throws. I fought him everything I got, but it wasn't enough. Would I ever have enough?

* * *

As we continued to fight, he blocked my every move with ease. It was almost noon now and I needed to think of a plan._ What can I do that he will never expect? _Something that can distract him. Suddenly, a realization just clicked in my head. It was not only a plan but something from my past, something from my lost memory and I was going to use it against him.

I ran to distance myself from him. I needed him to think I was getting tired, that I was weakening.

"You are giving up already?" Kakashi instigated me.

_You wish. _Placing my hands on my knees, I began to wheeze.

"I thought you had more in you," Kakashi said, making tsk tsk noises.

_More than you think, old timer. _Gleaming at him, I disappeared out of sight.

At a distance, I could see Kakashi holding his kunai knife up and looking for me. _I'm ready; I'm ready to win this. _

I reappeared in front of him and attacked, hard. With my left leg firmed in the ground, I kicked him square in the stomach with my right. He grabbed my foot, making me grin. He made a mistake. I used the foot he was holding as leverage and I pushed off to perform a backflip. As I was midair, I threw my only shuriken at him. Of course, he dodged it.

"Nice try, but you need to think harder if you want the bell," he said.

Standing feet away from him, I smirked. Kakashi looked at me confused. I explained myself by looking to my left. He followed his gaze and we both looked, me in triumphant and him in shock, at what walked towards us.

* * *

**What did she dig up from her past that left Kakashi in shock? Find out next chapter!**

**Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer. Hope you are enjoying it so far.**

**"Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak****" - Sun Tzu**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Warning: **My OC uses colorful language.

Happy reading.

* * *

**Chapter 5: I'll Never Give Up**

We both looked, me in triumphant and him in shock, at what walked towards us.

Walking towards us was the girl that I have supposedly known all my life. Who knew who I was, what I was. That girl who evidently knew everything about me, both good and bad. Who knew all my dirty little secrets and was trustworthy enough to keep them. But, that's now not the case. Because that girl was clueless. That girl didn't know who I was anymore. Didn't know any of my secrets, didn't even know what kind of person I was. Why was this? It's because that girl was me.

Kakashi looked in astonishment at the other copy, a clone, another perfect genetic copy of myself, walked towards us. Her walk was between a persona of a dictator and one of a complete bad-ass, like she's done this kind of shit before (pickpocket I mean). Taking long, cocky, but confident strikes, she headed towards my direction. She placed the pickpocketed object in my hands and I rose it up to examine it. _Small, silver and shiny. Booyah! _ I high-fived her and soon after she poofed away.

I couldn't help but gleam. I actually did it!? Who would have known that a weak, pathetic girl like myself could do anything like that? Kakashi was a full-grown ninja. I was just a little 14 year old girl._ Was it true what Kakashi was telling me? Was I really a ninja? Did I truly have powers; powers hidden inside me?_

Kakashi slowly clap his hands, "Well done". Quickly after, he smirked and informed, "But this ruins the theory I had before about you only able to use taijutsu".

I was too excited to feel disappointed about his theory. I have just done something I never thought was possible. I was more than just a nobody. I walked towards Kakashi, gleaming.

"Let's go back to the tree", he pointed and this time I lead the way.

At the tree, I stood in front of Kakashi as he resumed his position, leaning causally. I had too much excitement to sit down. I was finally going to find out why he called me Quorra. My hands were tingling from excitement.

Reading the incitement on my face and knowing fully well why I was smiling like a goon, he began to speak, "Well", looking up at the trees.

"Since you didn't know anything about yourself, not even your name." He paused with a weird look on his face. The King of Nonchalance looked uncomfortable, embarrassed almost.

"I thought that it didn't seem fair to address you without some sort of name." Looking at me now, he concluded, "So I decided to refer to you as Quorra."

At that moment, I was glad I couldn't speak. Words couldn't describe my thoughts. I didn't know if I should be flattered or disappointed. A potential piece of the puzzle just evaporated before me. He wasn't the gate keeper to a lost part of me. Memory trail that I travel down was still hazy.

But at the same time, yes, Kakashi never knew my real name. But, does that really matter? He cared enough to give me a name, to give myself an identity because to be realistic, it doesn't seem like I was going to find out my real name anytime soon. Instead of clearing my path for me, he created another one.

Interrupting my thoughts, he added, "Of course, you're welcome to change it. It is your name after all."

I gave the kind shinobi a sad smile and shook my head. I wasn't going to change that name. He could have put a lot of thought it or probably none what-so-ever. But, at least for now, my emaciated body along with my few jumbled memories had an identity. It was the first time I ever felt like I was a real human being, with a real name. From now on, my name would be Quorra. Plus, I had to hand it to him, it had a nice ring to it.

We smiled at each other until he disturbed the atmosphere by shoving his hands into this pant pockets and began to walk away. "Come on", he stated, "it's time for you to meet the Hokage."

* * *

Walking through the village was very intimidating. As I walked behind Kakashi, I got a real close-up of the village. People of all ages crowded the outdoor shops and food stands. Konoha villagers were talking and laughing. There was even an elderly couple arguing about what they should have for dinner, which made me smile.

I knew I was just an ordinary girl, but I couldn't shake the feeling that all the villagers' eyes were locked on me. Granted, it could all be in my head. But, I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb. This village was picturesque but I didn't belong there. I was an outsider. Surely, the Hokage would say the same thing. Maybe, just maybe I could live here and restart my battered life, but even if I wanted to do that, the Hokage wouldn't allow it. Would he?

Kakashi stopped at what I assumed was the Hokage's Residence and man, this place was massive. It was huge with three dome-shaped red buildings with the center tower displaying the kanji symbol for fire at the top. This must be the place.

"Ready to go?" Kakashi asked. As if I had a choice.

Hesitant, I nodded and followed him in.

* * *

When we arrived at the front doors to the Hokage's office, Kakashi told me to wait out here as he talked to the Hokage privately first. Then, he explained, it would be my turn. As Kakashi knocked on the door and went inside, I sat against the wall across the hall.

Nerves bubbled within me. It felt like the storm from days earlier was resurrecting in the bottom of my stomach. I wondered what the Hokage was like. What if he was ruthless and immediately sent me out of the village before even giving me a chance? What would I do if that was the case? I would have no clue where to go from here. If a storm could easily kill me, I had no doubt that a shinobi or even an animal would take one look at me and saw an easy kill. Let's be realistic, I wouldn't last long outside this village. But, it could be worse. The Hokage could demand that I was to be locked up because of my unknown past. I wouldn't blame him. Who knew what I really was? I could be a criminal! I was an outsider after all, one with no memory of her past.

But, what if, what if the Hokage was nice? Maybe he will feel sorry for this mindless girl and allow me to stay.

My concentration broke when I heard barking coming from the end of the hall. Wa_s that a dog?_

My question was immediately answered when a cute little puppy came dashing down the halls and headed straight towards me. _Oh, Man._ The energetic pup pounced into my lap and furiously began licking my face! _Gross! _His tongue was wet and slimy but I couldn't help but silently giggle. The little tan, brown-eared thing was just too adorable. As my face became a human slime ball, shouts came from down the hall in the same direction as the pup's.

"Akamaru! Where'd you run off to?" yelled a boy who looked about my age.

_Akamaru? Is that your name?_ As Akamaru yipped with glee, he hopped off me to ran towards his owner. Though little, the pup leaped from the ground onto his owner's head. Never thought I would see a sight like this, but there's a first for everything.

The owner wore a grey hoodie with fur trimming the hood, sleeves, and bottom. He wore navy shorts and blue shinobi shoes. He had dark brown spiky hair, small eyes and two red painted triangles on each cheek.

I must had been staring too long without realizing it because he gave me a puzzled look. Caught off guard, sheepishly, I smiled and gave a slight wave. _He probably thinks that I am nuts._

As if all was forgiven, he grinned. "Hey. Are you new here? I have never seen you before".

I answered his question with a quick nod.

"I see. How do you like the village so far?"

Wishing that my vocal chords weren't useless, I nodded my head and smiled to reply.

"Not talkative are you? Well, you are going to like it here. My name is Kiba Inuzuka".

My mouth opened to silently reply when Kakashi opened the Hokage's door. "Quorra, the Hokage is ready to see you".

I gave Kiba an apologetic look and got up from my spot. As I entered the door before Kakashi, Kiba called from behind, "It was nice meeting you, Quorra."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow of recognition as I turned and waved goodbye to Kiba before I walked into the office. Kakashi closed the Hokage's door behind us.

I entered the Hokage's office. The bare room only had the Hokage's desk, surrounded by many windows showing the perfect view of the village. The Hokage sat behind his desk, dressed in a white and red robe as well as a hat with the fire kanji on it. He was light skinned with a small goatee and short spiked hair, both grey. Few creases enhanced his age as well as a few liver spots but he still looked like a wealthy mid-aged man. A presence of a very powerful man, indeed.

Kakashi and I stood in the middle of the room. Taking in the site of the room, I become flustered when I noticed that Kakashi bowed and quickly bow as well. _How rude am I? Of course I have to bow! _

We stood back upright and the Hokage introduced himself, "Hello there. Kakashi here tells me your name is Quorra. I am the third Hokage of Konohagakure, Sarutobi Hiruzen. It is a pleasure to meet you".

Because I couldn't speak, I return his reply with another bow. _Have to show him that I have some manners!_

"No need to be so formal, Quorra." I rose again and he continued, "Kakashi, why don't you explain to me the situation."

Kakashi cleared his throat, "Right, of course. You see, I was returning home from a mission when I found this girl barely conscience in the middle of a brutal storm. She seemed to be in the storm for hours and was wounded so I brought her back to Konoha to be hospitalized."

_Well, that explains why he was crazy enough to be in the middle of a shit storm._

Kakashi sighed, "The nurses explained that she is fourteen years of age and healthy except for damaged vocal cords, enabling her to speak. However, she has undetermined blood sample results. There seems to be a high amount of an unknown substance in her blood that is causing it to become black in color. But, there are no clues pointing to it being a threat. Also, the girl has no recollection of who is she or where she came from. She didn't even know her name so I gave her a name so she can have an identity.

Her hospital examinations also pointed to having muscle work and chakra flow of being a shinobi so I personally tested her abilities. Even with chakra levels only being slightly higher than an average civilian, she was still able to perform some shinobi techniques such as the shadow clone jutsu. She was able to retrieve the bell".

My heart hammered in my chest. _He never told me about the blood test results. _This couldn't be good. There were hardly any solid statements about me. Mainly, it were uncertain answers. _There is no reason for me to stay in this village. The Hokage will kick me out for sure. _Sweat beaded down my forehead. Anticipating for his reply was making me panic.

"Hmm", the Hokage rubbed his chin in deep thought. "I see the problem here. Although she doesn't appear to be a threat, there is no proof that she isn't one either."

I winced. _He's going to do it. He's going to kick me out. What am I going to do? How am I going to survive outside of the village? _I tried composing myself as I shook like leaf on a tree and the wind was trying to viciously blow me away into the unknown, into the nothingness.

The Hokage stared into my fear-filled eyes. "But, I cannot send this girl outside of this village. Not until we have more answers".

My heart stopped and my body stiffened. I was completely shocked. My eyes rapidly looked back and forth from Kakashi, who was nodding his head in agreement, to the Hokage. _What?!_

The Hokage continued, "I want her watched under close supervision by you, Kakashi, and to be continually tested to figure out this unknown substance. I also want to be notified immediately if she has any of her memory returned, anything at all. Even if it is the minutest detail, I want to be informed everything".

Kakashi nodded his head in agreement, "Right. And what should I do with her when I am assigned to my new students, Hokage-sama?"

_Students? Kakashi has students?_

"Hmm. Yes, you are meeting your new students tomorrow aren't you? Well, she would be allowed to work with them and join in training exercises as well as simple D-rank missions that are within the village walls. No handling weapons unless under supervision. She can sharpen her skills and who knows, it might trigger a memory. But! Under no condition is she allowed to leave the village by any means what so ever. When you are on a mission outside the village, she will be watched by AMBU".

"Yes, Hokage-sama, understood", Kakashi relied.

The Hokage turned to me with a warm smile. I tensed but returned a shaky smile back. "I would like to welcome you Quorra, to the village of Konoha. I hope to see you again soon with some answers".

With one final bow, I left the office with Kakashi. I didn't know what happened but under some strange twist of faith, I was allowed to stay in Konoha, for now. _Holy shit! What just happened?_

* * *

**Quorra met a few new people today. And received a bit of a shock from the Third Hokage. What will happen next?**

**Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer. Hope you are enjoying it so far.**

**"Sometimes you make choices in life and sometimes choices make you." - Gayle Forman**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Warning: **My OC may use colorful language.

**_PS: This font means it's a dream, in case you didn't realize._**

Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 6: Wild Child**

Kakashi and I left the Hokage's Residence and headed back into the center of town.

"Come on,"he said. "Let's celebrate. I know just the place".

* * *

We soon arrived at a place called Ichiraku Ramen. It was a small restaurant, but it had charm. We walked in and took a seat on the bar stools.

As I sat, an overwhelming fragrance of fresh food and ramen filled my nostrils. My stomach growled furiously in reply. _That's right. I haven't eaten anything. So much has happened today that I must have forgotten._

An older man greeted us, "Hello there. How are you two today? What can I get for you?"

Kakashi placed our order, "Hello Teuchi, we will just have two miso ramen. Thank you".

"Coming right up," the man replied. "Ayame! You heard the man," he called to the girl working behind the counter. They both got straight to cooking.

I watched the two chiefs prepare the food when I heard Kakashi's name being called. A man around Kakashi's age, possibly younger, who wore a similar uniform, approached.

"Ah, Iruka," Kakashi turned to greet him. "What brings you here?"

Iruka was average built with brown hair pulled up into a pony tail. He had dark brown eyes and a scar that ran across the bridge of his nose. "I was in the area and decided to stop by Ichiraku Ramen for dinner. Looks like I made a good choice." He smiled.

Kakashi introduced me and I gave a friendly smile. Iruka sat next to Kakashi and joined us for dinner.

"So, Kakashi, are you ready to meet your new students tomorrow? I got to hand it to you, they are a rambunctious group. Naruto Uzumaki is a handful by himself but Sasuke Uchiha will also be in your group. For whatever reason, Sasuke seems to fuel Naruto's flame, making him even more boisterous, especially when the third teammate, Sakura Haruno, is busy admiring Sasuke."

Kakashi sighed, "It seems I will have my hands full with them, but we will see how successful they will be at my bell test. That will ultimately test how well they can work together".

Iruka nodded with agreement as our meals were all served. My bowl of miso ramen was placed in front of me and my mouth waters. _It smells so good! _

Halfway through scarfing down my ramen, my attention was drawn toward outside. The three of us peaked outside the restaurant to see what was the commotion.

"It's Naruto, again! He's up to no good like always". Iruka complained, rolling his eyes.

_So this is the famous Naruto. _I witnessed as a small boy was running away from multiple adults. He had crazy yellow hair that was somewhat maintained by a pair of goggles. He wore an orange jumpsuit with the top half wrapped around his waist. In his hands, he carried a paint brush along with a bucket of paint.

The wild boy ran into the restaurant, "Hi Teuchi! Hi Ayame! I hope you are both preparing a bowl of ramen for me!" he screamed.

Teuchi replied, unaffected by the pandemonium outside, "Yes Naruto, we have a bowl waiting for you just the way you like it. Extra pork".

The boy gleamed and realized he wasn't the only costumer. "Hi Iruka Sensei. Hi Kakashi Sensei. Did you see the artwork I did on the Great Stone Faces? They look much better that way!" He then stared at me "Who are you? You look new! I'm Naruto Uzumaki! Believe it!"

Before I could even attempt to reply, we all heard shouts coming from outside.

"Got to run!" Naruto yelled. And with that, he disappeared as quickly as he appeared.

_I can see why Iruka called Naruto, rambunctious. That kid has way too much energy. He can probably run up a mountain without it fazing him. Heck, he can probably run across the country without breaking a sweat. What a wild child._

After we finished our delicious bowls of ramen and I shamelessly had a second round, Iruka said his goodbyes and explained how he had to go find Naruto to yell and order him to clean up his mess. Kakashi, after, escorted me to where I would be staying. My temporary home was in an apartment complex on the east side of the village. Kakashi and I walked up to the third floor as he juggled the keys.

He unlocked the door, "Home sweet home."

We both walked inside and I looked at my new home. It was small, very small. It could easily be defined as a hole in the wall. To the right of the entrance stood a crooked coat hanger and a bathroom to the left. The room soon opened up into the main living area. With the small kitchenette on the far right wall, a small round table that seated four was placed in front of it. Next to the kitchen are tall, floor to ceiling cream curtains. The other side of the room had the bed with two small nightstands with matching lamps. The finishing touch was the light fixture that hung over the kitchen table, with one of the two bulbs burned out.

As if he could read my mind, "It's small, but it has character. You see, this place has something special".

Curious, I followed Kakashi to the far end of the apartment to the curtains. He pulled them back to reveal a charming little balcony that overlooked the village. Lights glimmered in all directions. The nightlife was busy with entertainers preforming some sort of light show for villagers and families. Children were chasing after each other, parents calling them to not wonder too far. Everyone looked genuinely happy and content with life. _What a beautiful sight. This place is like a hidden gem, full of surprises._

I noticed that the other apartments didn't have balconies except for the one right of me but that one was smaller than my own. This place was certainly unique from the others.

We left the breath taking views and headed back inside. "I left a pair of pajamas on the bed for you. Make yourself comfortable. Head to bed early because we will be meeting our teammates at 6 a.m. _sharp._"

I nodded and escorted Kakashi to the door, "Oh, by the way," as Kakashi opened the door, "I live in the apartment next door so if you need anything, don't be hesitant to knock".

Before I could react, he nonchalantly waved goodnight and closed the door behind him. I sighed, walked to my new bed and laid down with a heavy plop.

_Is the Hokage that worried about me that he places me next door to Kakashi? Do I really appear that much of a threat? I know my past is fuzzy and it is a precaution for the sake of his village but look at me. I'm small and weak. Do I appear that menacing?_

Saddened by that thought, I knew exactly what could cheer me up. A freaking shower!

I pranced into my bathroom with a towel and fresh pajamas and hopped into the shower. Warm water cascaded down my back as the layers, of what I thought were permanent, grime washed off. As I washed, I felt the structure of my body. I examined my skin, my curves from the slenderness of my legs to the broadness of my shoulders. Relearning this vessel, that was apparently mine.

Satisfied, I turned off the water, left the shower and changed. I was thankful that all the necessities I would need were already in my bathroom. I took my comb and brushed through my hair. When was the last time I brushed my hair? It was a giant rat's nest. _I'm surprised my hair isn't dread-locked. Man! The knots!_

As I brushed, I stared at myself in the small mirror over the sink. This was the first time I was really seeing myself since I had awaken. As I fought to detangle my knotted hair, I learned that it was very long, down to my waist, and wavy. Waves of a soft chestnut brown waterfall down my body. A few strands at the bottom curled like a stubborn pig's tails. Fringed bangs stopped just below my eyebrows. My skin tone was olive and my cheekbones and jawline were pronounced and framed my face.

The most noticing appearance on my face were my eyes. They were large and piercing as they were light green, like the color of celery.

All of these features were unrecognizable. The long, wavy chestnut hair, the olive skin, the pronounced cheeks and angular jawline, were all new to me. I would have never known that the girl staring back at me was me. That this face belonged to me.

Every day, I was going to learn something new about myself whether it was physical or mental or even emotional. This unknown entity was mine and the thought that I had to discover everything on my own was scary and overwhelming.

In the mirror, a glimmer of hope rises within me. Even though my facial features looked lost, my vibrant eyes were full of promise and determination. Promising I will be alright and determined I will find myself, that I am strong enough to do so.

Ready to end my eventful day, I went to lie down and stared up at my ceiling.

How life was going to play from here on out? Was it possible to win over the Hokage's trust? If I unraveled the secrets lying dormant inside me, would that be reason enough to trust me? Would he let me stay then or will worry still fill his heart. Even if I did win his trust and he let me stay, do I even want that? The village was nice but I couldn't lie to myself and think that I belonged here. Not by a long shot. The villagers already looked at me, knowing fully well that I didn't. Their smiles were warm but I could read traces of concern from their eyes. Maybe no one would want me to stay.

With that thought, something dawned on me. How did Kakashi buy me a pair of pajamas and the other things when he was with me the whole day? I didn't see him make a shadow clone. There could be dozens of ways how he got the pajamas. Pondering this, I knew it was false hope, but maybe Kakashi knew I could stay. Maybe he knew that the Hokage would allow me to stay, even if it was temporary. Maybe _he_ wanted me to stay.

Knowing fully well that that could be pushing it, it was enough to ease my mind and coax me into a deep sleep.

* * *

**_I was left alone to face my faith. It was cold and damp here. Water droplets hit the cement ground in the distance, echoing the silent room. _**

**_DRIP. _**

**_My perception of the world was thrown off balance as I laid sideways on the ground. Dirt and grime rubbed abrasively against my cheek. Heavy-duty chains wrapped multiple times around my frail body, binding me in place. No matter how hard I tried to focus, the room remained pitch black. I knew then, there was no point in struggling._**

**_DRIP._**

**_I laid in silence. Only the dripped water and my shaken breath accompanied me. All I could think about was how I knew I was going to die._**

**_DRIP. _**

**_Heavy footsteps echoed in the distance, coming closer. My heart beat faster than a hummingbird's wings, with each beat hammering harder against my rib cage._**

**_DRIP. DRIP. DRIP!_**

**_The footsteps stopped and I heard a person fiddle with some keys. The door to my dungeon creaked open slowly. A black silhouette walked towards me. I tried to move but I couldn't, not in the least bit. The figure loomed over me. Large, menacing, monstrous. The reaper before my eyes._**

**_But, my panic breaths began to steady, in recognition. _**

**_The next thing I knew, my body was thrown into an upper-right position. My world began to spin as I felt the pain of a needle stabbed into my arm. Wincing in pain, I tried my best to focus. I wanted to see who this entity was. How did I know them? My eyes focused and only able to capture the sight of eyes. Sea foam pupil-less eyes stared intently at me. Dizziness consumed me _****_once again._**

**_DRIP._**

* * *

My body jolted upright causing me to fall off my bed, knocking the lamp off the nightstand in the process. The lamp, like my mind, shattered on the floor.

I wheezed. _What in the world was that!? It felt like I was there. I thought I was… I thought I was going to die. _

My body shook uncontrollably. I placed my hand over my jumpy heart and tried to breathe long and steady breaths, a failed attempt to calm myself. _Where was I? Whose silhouette did I just see? Could any of that be real?_

A knock from the balcony's glass sliding door snapped me out of my spell. Kakashi stood outside with anticipation.

I composed myself as best as I could muster and unlocked the sliding door.

"Are you alright?" he asked. His face expressed tiredness and concern.

Still shaking, I nodded, avoiding eye contact with him. Kakashi didn't look too convinced, but he nodded i and jumped back over to his balcony.

I closed the sliding door, locked it and went to clean up the scattered glass on the floor. Then, I crawled with my tired body back into bed where I spend the remaining hours of the night trying to calm my wired mind.

* * *

**Quorra got a new apartment with a new neighbor. Life seems stable until she has a crippling nightmare that shakes her to the core. Could that nightmare be a flash of memory or was it just that, a nightmare. Who was that she saw in her dream? Who do think it was? Friend, enemy? Frenemy? What do you think?! Hmmm...**

**Constructive criticism is always welcomed. This story is my platform towards becoming a better writer. Hope you are enjoying it so far.**

**Preview to the next chapter: ****"See ya later, Quorra" he continues to wave. "Watch out for those monkey bars!"**

**"I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?" - John Lennon**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Warning: **There may be potty mouth business.

Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 7: Team 7 plus one**

We're late.

It was the next morning. Kakashi and I were walking to meet the graduating students of Team 7 at the academy.

_When he said 6 a.m. sharp; I thought he meant 6 a.m. __**sharp.**_

I crossed my arms and gave him a disapproved look.

"What?" He replied nonchalantly. "It's a perfect day for a stroll."

I sighed. There was no point in silently arguing with the man. And I got to hang it to him, it was nice out.

Shortly after, we arrived at the academy and walked towards the classroom where we were apparently meeting them.

Before opening the door to officially meet my temporary teammates, Kakashi gave me a sideways glance. "Why do you look so nervous?"

I didn't realize that I was until he mentioned it. I hadn't formally met people my age before. I didn't know how they would react or how I was supposed to react. Would I like them? More importantly, would they like me?

I shrugged as Kakashi placed his hand on the door to push it open when a chalkboard eraser landed on his head.

I jumped back. _What the fuck? _

We were greeted to the sound of cackling. The Wild Child from yesterday, officially known as Naruto, was bent over with one hand holding his stomach and the other pointing at Kakashi. "Hahaha!" He started has he tried to control his laughter, "I got him. He totally fell for it."

Puzzlement crept onto my face. Kakashi had to know that the eraser was placed there. He was a high ranked shinobi. Why would he let himself fall for it?

As Naruto continued his laughing fit, a long pink haired, green-eyed girl, who I assumed was Sakura, apologized parsimoniously, "I'm sorry sensei! I told him not to do it, but he wouldn't listen. I would never do anything like that!" Her sunken, dull eyes and unpleasant smile were more menacing with each syllable she spoke. Not convincing enough to be sorry.

Not sure what Kakashi intended to do, he picked up the chalk eraser. "Hmmm, how can I say this? My first impression of this group... you're a bunch of idiots," he said causally, as if it wasn't a complete insult.

I covered my mouth to conceal my devious grin. Naruto was such a prankster and that pink haired girl seemed like a complete sociopath. From the look at that huge smirk on her face, she seemed to enjoy Naruto's recklessness and loved to see him get into trouble. The girl could shatter a concrete wall with the twinkle in her eyes.

On the other hand, the last member of the team, hadn't shown any physical or emotional movements. Either he was the dark and mysterious type, or he was a fucking stoner. I wanted to wave my hands over his eyes to see if he would blink.

Kakashi cleared his throat, "Right, let's go outside and get to know each other a little more."

Team 7, plus one, traveled outside to 'get to know each other a little more'. We settled at the bottom of a set of stairs. The students sat by the steps as Kakashi and I leaned against the railing of the balcony. It was too intimidating to be next to the trio.

"Hey, Kakashi sensei!", Naruto yelled. "I saw that girl yesterday at Ichiraku Ramen with you! Why is she here with us?" As he pointed to me, "I thought teams were only groups of four shoenobi!"

"It's SHI-nobi, you dunce" Sakura corrected.

Kakashi ignored Naruto's statement and introduced me. He explained how I was new in the village and he was assigned to help me adapt to the shinobi life. "Just think of Quorra as an internee," he concluded.

I gave my temporary team a small wave.

"Alright, why don't you introduce yourselves one at a time", Kakashi said.

Sakura replied, "Introduce ourselves? Well, what are we supposed to say?"

"Things you like, things you hate, dreams for the future, hobbies, and things like that," he clarified.

Naruto replied, "Why don't you tell us stuff first, I mean so we can see how it's supposed to work."

"Me? I'm Kakashi Hatake. Things I like and things I hate, um, don't feel like telling you that. My dreams for the future, never thought about it. As for hobbies, I have many."

The four of us gave him a look as if he just did something completely inexplicable. Even Naruto was flabbergasted. _He would bullshit with us. _

After a moment to sink in Kakashi's remark, Sakura summed up what we were all thinking. "That was totally useless. All he told us was his name."

We all nodded our heads in agreement. _Yup, he's completely useless._

"Kakashi sensei, that didn't help us squat! Believe it!" Naruto accused.

It didn't faze Kakashi. "Okay, your turn. You won the right, you first."

"Believe it! I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like instant ramen in a cup and I really like the ramen Iruka-sensei gets me at the Ichiraku Ramen noodle shop, but I hate the three minutes you have to wait after you pour the ramen in the ramen cup. My hobby is to eat different kind of ramen and comparing them. And my future dream is to become the greatest Hokage then the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody, somebody important!"

Alright, this kid obviously had an unnatural obsession with ramen. And he wanted to become Hokage? The leader of this village? Yesterday he vandalized the Great Stone faces, which Kakashi informed me were the faces of the past and present Hokages of the village, and yet he wanted to be a leader. I doubt that would happen.

As I gazed at the hyperactive ninja, though, I couldn't help but see pure determination in his bright blue eyes. It made me want to believe it would happen... one day.

"Alright," Kakashi didn't give a shit. "Next."

Sakura began, "I'm Sakura Haruno. What I like huh. I mean the person I like is." She stared at the boy who hadn't said anything yet. "Mmm huh my hobby is," as she gaped at the boy, "Mmm my dream for the future is..." She severely gawked and squealed.

"And?" Kakashi asked. "What do you hate?"

Without any hesitation, "Naruto!"

Poor Naruto looked like he died a little on the inside.

_Oh my._ I shook my head. It was worse than I thought. The girl was completely obsessed with stoner boy and, by the looks of it, never looked in her direction. Poor sap.

Still not giving a shit, "Last one."

Stony began to introduce himself, "My name" he paused, rather dramatically.

_Sweet Jesus. _

"Is Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of thing and don't like particularly like anything. What I have is not a dream because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan and destroy a certain someone."

With that followed a nice awkward pause.

_Stoner just admitted that he was going to murder someone…great._

Kakashi, wrapped it up. "Good, you're each unique and you have your own ideas."

That's one way to put it.

He concluded, "We will have our first mission tomorrow."

Naruto interrupted, "What about Quorra? She didn't go yet".

I tensed up.

"Oh, I forgot," Kakashi waved Naruto off. "Quorra is unable to speak at the moment. She had an accident and temporary lost her voice."

"What happened to your voice?" Sakura asked me.

"You see," he established, "She hit her throat and damaged her vocal chords trying to perform a stunt on the monkey bars."

My head slowly turned towards the smiling masked shinobi.

**_I did what!? _**

I gave him the dirtiest evil eye. Sakura's facial expressions for Naruto were nothing compared to the **_glare _**that was burrowing into Kakashi's skull right now. My eye twitched.

_Really, Kakashi? My throat just so happen to fall on a monkey bar? Are you fucking kidding me? Do I like that incompetent? The team probably thinks that I have problems now. Thanks a lot!_

The trio stared blankly at me. Crickets echoed in the distance.

I heard crickets! There were actual crickets! Where were they coming from?!

"Yes, it's quiet a bizarre accident but she will recover in no time," Kakashi said with dismay, patting my head.

_I am going to kill him! _

"In the meantime, we will all get to know her as we work together. As I was saying, we will be having our first mission tomorrow."

Naruto asked, "What kind of mission are we going to have?"

"It's a task that the five of us will do together, a training exercise" Kakashi replied.

"What what what? What!" Naruto screamed.

Sakura was confused as well, "What? I thought were supposed to have a mission not some training exercise. We already did this stuff at the academy. That's how we got here."

Kakashi explained, "This is not like your previous training".

"So, huh, what kind of training is it?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi chucked, evilly. Amusement in his eye. _  
_

Sakura asked what was so funny as Kakashi continued to chuckle. "Well, if I tell you the answer, you're not going to like it."

We waited intently for him to explain further. Even Sasuke seemed to be at the edge of his seat.

Finally, he spilled the beans. "Out of the 27 graduates that just came here, only 9 of them will be accepted as genin. The other 18 will be weeded out and sent back to the academy. In other words, this is a make it or break it pass-fail test. And the chance that you'll fail is at least 66%."

Four mouths opened, staring at him. Even though I was not a shinobi, I couldn't help but feel nervous for Team 7. They went through years of hard work and schooling to get here. Kakashi was just shattering their dream like it was nothing.

"See", he concluded. "Didn't I tell you you wouldn't like it?"

Naruto was furious. "That's crazy! We worked hard to get here, believe it!"

"That's how it is. I decide whether you pass or fail. Be at the designated training ground spot at 5 a.m. and bring your ninja gear. That's it your dismissed. Oh, tomorrow you better skip breakfast or else you'll puke."

The students stood nervously. I couldn't imagine the thoughts running through their minds. Their future all relied on this one mission. Kakashi would be determining their faith from this point out.

"Right then, see you all tomorrow. And remember, don't be late." Kakashi said, happily.

I rolled my eyes. _Don't be late my ass._

We de-grouped and I was about to walk away with Kakashi when Sakura ran up to me. "Hey Quorra! Want to go shopping?"

Dumbfounded, I didn't know how to reply. Why would she want to go shopping with me? Did I look that terrible?

Looking down at my same white t-shirt and navy capris outfit from yesterday, I concluded that, yes, I looked God awful. It was Kakashi who supplied me with these clothes, after all.

Kakashi intervened, "Quorra, I forgot." He handed me a small velvet pouch. "The Hokage gave you some money. Why don't you get some lunch, clothes, and such?"

I snapped back to reality and nodded to Sakura. _Yes, I will go shopping with Socio-erm. I mean Sakura._

* * *

In town, Sakura and I drifted from shop to shop. She bought everything her eyes could possibly lay on. From shoes, to clothes, to accessories, you name it. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if there was an ancient artifact dating back to a thousand years ago in one of the sea of bags she was lugging around. Unlike her, I was carrying one small bag filled with some toiletries and what-not that I needed for the apartment. I also thought it would be smart to buy a notepad and pens so I could actually communicate with society.

_I hope I get my voice back soon._

We were about to enter a clothing store called Flirty Girl when Sakura stopped dead in her tracks. I almost bumped into her as she stared intensely at something behind me.

I turned to see that the pink-haired shinobi was actually glaring at some_one_. A girl with long, straight blond hair pulled up into a ponytail walked towards us with a snooty face. Her long bangs covered much of her face but her big pupil-less blue eyes didn't fail returning Sakura's death glare.

The girls were barely inches away from each other. "Trying to fix your pitiful wardrobe, Billboard Brow?" the blonde snarled.

Sakura came back with, "In your dreams, Ino-pig! I am extenuating it. You wish your sense of style was as good as mine!"

This Ino girl was wearing a short purple vest with a bunched-up collar along with a purple skirt featuring slits on either side. She had bandages around her stomach and legs with purple and white elbow warmers. Her forehead protector was around her waist to complete the look.

Ino had a great sense of style. Sakura would demolish me if I ever admitted that.

They continued fighting and throwing insults at each other. Sakura called Ino a talentless, fashion-deprived hooch while Ino called Sakura a wide-forehead dud. Suddenly, Sakura mentioned that Sasuke was hers and, well, all hell broke loose. If I thought Sakura was obsessed with Sasuke before, I really knew now that she was crazy for him and apparently Ino had mutual feelings. I didn't understand why he was so special. He didn't seem to associate himself with anyone.

As they continued to fight over who would be Sasuke's lover, I heard someone call my name. I turned towards sound and the two bickering girls paused from their love quarrel as well, both wondering who it was.

The owner of the call was the boy that I bumped into at the Hokage's Residence, Kiba. He waved excitedly as he approached me. With him were two other shinobi. One was a small girl, the other a boy.

Akamaru hopped off his owner's head and dashed towards me. I was greeted with slobber, lots of slobber and happy yips. I smiled and cuddled with the energetic pup. Sakura and Ino made a noise of disgust. Ino remarked how repulsive and grimy the pup was. Guess they weren't fans of puppies, or dog slobber. But I didn't freaking care, Akamaru was just trying to say hello. _Dogs drool, so what._

"Hey, Quorra!" Kiba said, "How's it going? How do you like the village?"

I smiled and nodded. The village was interesting to say the least.

Kiba smiled back, "Ah, Quorra, these are my teammates, Hinata Hyuuga and Shino Aburame".

"H-hello, nice to m-meet you" Hinata greeted. She was a small girl with short dark blue hair. She had a cream hooded jacket and navy blue pants. Her newly earned forehead protect laid around her neck.

Shino remained silent behind his high-collar jacket and round sunglasses.

I waved hello.

"You're really not talkative are you?" Kiba concluded.

"She can't talk" Sakura explained. "She had an accident and fell throat first on a set of monkey bars and damaged her vocal chords," she said matter-of-factly.

I shuddered. Hearing my horrible accuse was terrible the first time. Hearing it again made me want to hide myself under a rock. My face felt warm as everyone stood in silence. I hung my head down as deeper shades of red appeared.

_Fuck me, sideways._

"Wow," Ino said. "That's pretty pitiful".

_Okay, I take it back. She has an awful sense of style. Judgmental ogre. _

Kiba admitted, "Well things happen. I once fell into a thorn bush while I was chasing Akamaru. Let's just say mom had to pull thorns out of my ass for the rest of the afternoon." He rubbed the back of his head with a guilty look on his face.

I smiled shyly at Kiba. _Thank the heavens, Kiba understands my pain. Even though it is a complete lie, but still._

I could feel Sakura and Ino itching to say something insulting when something, well someone, caught their attention. At that moment, Sasuke walked through the market and passed us without a single glance.

As if the girls were on fire, Sakura grabbed her endless amount of bags and quickly dashed to Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke! Wait up!" with Ino right behind her. Neither one of them said goodbye.

I stared in awe. _Thanks for shopping with me, Sakura!_

After a moment of disbelief, "Wow, what a bunch of obsessed freaks," Kiba derived.

"You're just jealous that there aren't any girls drooling over you. The only ones drooling for you are your dogs," Shino criticized.

"What! No!" Kiba was so startled that poor Akamaru fell off his head into his arms. Kiba's face turned shades of beet red. "Why would I want girls all over me with every move I made?"

"I- I think it's sweet. They just care for Sasuke," Hinata whispered.

Kiba grunted, "Whatever."

I smirked. _Liar, you're so jealous._

"Well-l I have to go now. Father wants me home to train," Hinata said as she walked away, waving goodbye. "Bye, Q-Quorra. It was n-nice meeting you." I waved goodbye back.

Shino walked away as well. "Yeah, got to go too."

Within minutes, the group went from six people to only two. Might as well continue shopping, I still hadn't bought a new outfit yet. I waved goodbye to Kiba and walked away.

"Hey!" he yelled, "What are you doing now?"

I grabbed my newly bought notepad and wrote how I needed to buy some clothes.

"Cool! I can tag along if you want", Kiba's face turned red again.

Was he that bored that he was willing to go shopping? With a girl?

I shrugged. _Sure, whatever. Better than shopping alone._

"Sweet." Kiba placed Akamaru back upon his head and caught up with me.

We were in front of the shop Sakura was going to drag me into, Flirty Girl. The shop's window display had mannequins wearing frilly skirts and lace blouses, all in different shades of pink. I snorted. _Fuck that._

Kiba laughed, amused at my disgust and we continued on our way.

I stopped short when my eyes caught a store called Jammin' Leather. The mannequins were wearing black leather jackets and pants. One article caught my eye. _Perfect!_ I grabbed Kiba's wrist, which spun him, and dragged him inside. Both Kiba and Akamaru yelped in shock.

Inside, the store had a very dark atmosphere. Heavy music was playing and the wall décor was filled with bizarre and unique things. Skulls, guitars, depictions of Satan and such covered the walls and sculptures. _  
_

Kiba looked uncomfortable, "Huh, what do you want in _here_?"

I searched the store to find the precious piece of clothing that wonderfully entered my life. My eyes flickered with glee when I spotted it.

I ran up to it and instantly grabbed it. The article was a burgundy leather jacket with many compartments and gold hardware. _I love it!_

Kiba laughed witnessing me jump with joy. "You love leather, don't you?"

I shined a ridiculous smile and purchased the new love in my life along with a few pairs of black knee-length leggings and plain, loose-fitting, white V-neck T-shirts.

I waltzed out of the store with a healthy amount of bags. _Success! Goodbye old lame Kakashi hand-me-downs! Hello, new beauties!_

Walking back on the main street, Kiba asked if I wanted to get lunch. I nodded with agreement since I worked up some appetite.

* * *

We went to Ichiraku Ramen and both ordered miso ramen.

As we chowed down, we conversed for a bit. Kiba told me a little about his life. He'd been with Akamaru since the pup was born and have been inseparable ever since. He has a sister named Hana and a mother named Tsume. His father left at an early age because, apparently, his mother was a "Madwomen" as he put it.

"She once threw the hairdryer out a second story window," Kiba said. "She was pissed that it wasn't working. Later we found out that that was because she forgot to plug it in."

_She sounds like a very nice woman. _

Kiba asked about my life, of course. I complied and told him how I didn't know jack-shit about it. After he told me a bit about his life, I felt it was okay to tell him mine. By the looks of it, he generally seemed distraught about it. He felt bad which was nice of him to care but I didn't want to be pitied.

I waved him off, soon after, and he told me more stories about the Madwoman.

After we finished our ramen, I fished for my coin pouch so I could pay for us both, in a way of saying thanks for being my shopping buddy. Let's just say he was not having it.

"No way! You don't need to pay for me!"

I wrote in my notepad: YES I DO, ITS MY WAY OF SAYING THANKS!

Kiba yelled, "You don't NEED to say THANKS! I offered to join you!"

Making a huge scene, he put money on the table.

I pushed his money away as I counted mine. Kiba instantly pushed it back.

"I'm PAY-ING..." he pronounced slowly. Like I was mute _and_ deaf.

Stubbornness got the best of me as crumbled his money in a fist and threw it in his face, one of the coins bounced off his nose. He wore a look of disbelief as I slammed my payment down and waved goodbye to Teuchi and Ayame, sticking my tongue out at Kiba as I walked out of the restaurant.

Kiba was stubborn too, but he followed behind, crossing his arms in defeat. "Thanks," he grumbled.

_You're Welcome!_

* * *

Kiba offered to walk me back to the apartment complex. We were almost there when a very, very interesting individual ran towards us. This kid was wearing an unnecessarily tight green jumpsuit with orange leg warmers. The kid had the perfect bowl hair cut too.

"Hello, Kiba! Hello, erm..."

"Quorra" Kiba informed.

"Hello, Quorra! I'm Rock Lee." He enthusiastically said as he jogged in place followed by jumping-jacks.

I didn't know who was more energetic, this Rock Lee kid or Naruto.

"What's going on Lee?" Kiba asked.

Now doing push-ups, "I'm," push "making it," push "my personal mission," push "today, to hug," push "all my friends," push "to spread the youth" push up, push up, push up.

I looked at Kiba with a raised eyebrow. To hug all his friends to spread the youth? Well, he definitely had the energy to accomplish it.

"How many friends have you hugged so far?" Kiba asked.

As if I became a mouse and Lee the hawk, he abruptly jumped up and gave me a rib-breaking hug. As he squeezed tighter, I felt all my breath leave my body. _Oh my God! I can't breathe! _I tried to flair my arms but they were pinned down to my broken spine.

_I can't even tell him he's suffocating me!_

Lee continued to strangle me via hug with a huge smile on his face. _I'm actually going to die! Lee!_

Thankfully, he loosened his death grip and I crumbled to the floor. I gagged for breath, coughing furiously. I looked up at Kiba who was staring frightened at Lee.

"Quorra was my first hug of the day!" Lee said as he stares devilishly at Kiba.

Kiba backed away slowly, "Lee, it's okay. I don't need a hug." Akamaru barked.

"Don't be ridiculous! You're my friend! That means you need to be hugged!"

Kiba started to run away, causing poor Akamaru to fall off his head. Lee skipped with joy after him with Akamaru barking behind. The three of them chasing each other in all directions. It was actually a quiet comical sight. Kiba was running as fast as he could while Lee looked peaceful, skipping in the streets, like he could do this all day.

Finally I refilled my lungs with much needed oxygen and pulled myself back up.

Poor Kiba couldn't outrun him for long before Lee caught up and gave his well-known hug. I heard Kiba yell as the bones in his spine cracked. He went limb in defeat and groaned in pain. Lee hugged Kiba for long enough and released him. Broken Kiba fell to the ground.

I walked over to see if he was alright, or you know, still breathing. Luckily, Kiba recovered soon enough and I helped him up.

"Got to go friends! I must hug more people and spread the youth!" Lee said as he waved goodbye and ran off, leaving a trail of dust behind him.

_I think he's going to accidentally kill someone. Definitely not a youthful move._

"Man that guy is something," Kiba said as he rubbed his back.

I nodded in agreement as I started to rub my own. _I will never see hugging the same way again._

After recovering from that traumatic experience, we continued walking until we ended up in front of my complex.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around."

I scribbled in my notebook a thank you note for hanging out with me today.

"Sure, no problem," he rubbed the back of his head. "That's what friends are for."

I stared at him with shock. I guess we were considered friends now. My first real friend since I arrived. Well, second, if you include Lee because apparently we were friends or else he wouldn't had attempted to snap my spine.

I gave him a big smile and we said our goodbyes as I watched him leave with Akamaru trailing behind him.

He turned to wave and I waved back.

It was crazy but I felt the most relaxed around Kiba. He was stubborn and got hot-headed quickly but he was still a fun person to hang out with. I'd say today was a good day.

"See ya later Quorra" he continued to wave. "Watch out for those monkey bars!"

I stopped waving mid-wave and turned red.

_Kakashi! I'm going to karate chop you in the fucking throat the next time I see you!_

* * *

**Quorra met Team 7 today and found each one very, erm, interesting. She has to start being careful on those monkey bars! But more importantly, how will Team 7 and Quorra tell with Kakashi's test?**

**"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." -Bernard Meltzer**

**Here's a long chapter (at least for me) for you guys! It was fun writing a less doom-and-gloom and more of a silly chapter. **

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

**Warning: **There will be cussing. Isn't that obvious by now?

Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 8: The Bell Test 2.0**

"Come on, Quorra. Don't give me the cold shoulder." Kakashi pleaded as we walked to the training grounds. "I needed to make up some excuse, didn't I?"

I stuck my nose in the air and walked in front of him. Needless to say I was still mad at him.

_He could have came up with a better excuse!_

Kakashi sighed as he rubbed the bump on his head that I greeted him with this morning.

_He deserved much worse._

I was not only mad at him for telling everyone that I am the world's worst gymnast but also because I had to retake the bell test. I didn't understand why. I already passed, proved what I needed to prove. Kakashi explained that it was because I needed to pass a part of the test that I couldn't have passed before, whatever that meant. Either way, today was already starting off sour.

We arrived at the training grounds with the trio already there to greet us.

"Morning everyone, ready for your worst day?" Kakashi greeted.

"HEY, YOU'RE LATE!" Naruto and Sakura yelled.

"Well, a black cat crossed our path so we had to take the long way." Kakashi came up with the most pitiful excuses.

No one was buying it. Naruto mumbled something about him being a big fat liar. Sakura folded her arms and pouted. Sasuke was still and emotionless as always.

"Let's get started." Kakashi moved right along. "Your assignment is very simple. You just have to take these bells from me."

He jingled three bells in front of us. The annoying chiming rang through us. I moaned in remembrance of the stupid silver bells.

"That is all that is to it. If you can't get them by noon, you'll go without lunch and you'll be tied to those posts," he pointed to three posts behind us, "and you will watch as I eat my lunch in front of you."

We all gave Kakashi a bitter look.

_That's why he didn't want us to eat breakfast. That sneaky fuck._

Sakura said, "Wait a minute, there's four of us. How come there's only three bells?"

Kakashi gave an approving look. "Well that way, at least one of you will end up tied to the post and ultimately disqualified for failing to complete the mission. That one goes back to the academy. Then again all four of you can flunk out too. That includes you, Quorra. Everyone but Quorra can use any weapons, including shuriken. If you are not prepared to kill me, you won't be able to take the bells."

From the look at his dark eye, he was not kidding. He wanted us to attack him with our full force, with the dull intent of killing him. How was Team 7 supposed to do that? A sensei was a mentor, a person you had respect for and looked up to. Kakashi was asking us to abandon all common courtesy and respect, to throw that out the window.

_Damn._ It was a disadvantage enough that I couldn't communicate, but now I couldn't use weapons because of the deal with the Third Hokage. I was to compete with shinobi that have been studying and training for years. I was screwed.

Sakura yipped, "But, Sensei! Those weapons are too dangerous!"

"HAHA-yeah," Naruto added. "Especially since you couldn't even dodge that eraser." Naruto laughed again from the memory.

Matter-of-factly, Kakashi replied, "class clowns are usually the weakest links. You can safely ignore them, lowest scores, losers."

_Oh, that was harsh. _Naruto crossed his arms and stuck his nose in the air, '_hmph!_'

"When I say 'start' you can begin."

I tried to conjure up some sort of concrete plan, but Naruto already made his move before Kakashi gave the go. The wild child attacked Kakashi with a kunai knife.

Kakashi was fluently able to turn Naruto's arm so that his weapon aimed at the back of his head.

"Don't be in such a hurry. I didn't say start yet," Kakashi warned.

Naruto struggled to free himself, but Kakashi had a solid lock on him. He growled in frustration.

"But you came at me with the full intent of destroying me." Kakashi gave a smirk from under his mask, giving Team 7 their first non-insulting comment.

"I am beginning to like you guys. Get ready and… Start."

At that instant, Kakashi pushed Naruto away and everyone made their first moves. I ran to the closest cover, which happened to be a couple of bushes. Sakura and Sasuke concealed themselves as well while Naruto stood in the open.

_That boy is oblivious! Your first instinct is to hide, not stand in the open field, Dimwit._

Naruto shouted a battle cry and charged at Kakashi, who, the cocky bastard, pulled out a book and began to read.

Naruto swung his kunai knife which Kakashi dodged with ease. He turned the page, bored, infuriating the yellow-haired ninja.

"Shinobi battle techniques part one, taijutsu, the physical part," Kakashi said.

I remembered Kakashi mentioning taijutsu when testing me. He thought that was my main fighting style until I made a clone, blowing that theory.

Stubborn, Naruto tried his luck with a kick this time which Kakashi blocked with his non-reading arm. Naruto yelled and continued to attempt to lay a hit on his Sensei, each time failing miserably. Naruto's final punch hit air as Kakashi snuck up from behind him. Kakashi was crouched with a seal that displayed two fingers.

"Don't let your enemies sneak up from behind you all the time," Kakashi scolded.

I heard Sakura warn Naruto to get out of the way as Kakashi yelled, "Too late! Leaf village secret finger jutsu. A thousand years of death!" His jutsu sent Naruto soaring into air. His hands covering his bottom as he hit water.

He basically shoved his fingers up Naruto's ass. I sighed.

Kakashi continued reading his novel. Naruto threw shurikens from the water. Kakashi caught them with his fingers as if it was child's play.

Naruto resurfaced from the water and choking, dragging his body out.

"What are you doing now?" Kakashi asked, displeased. "You know you won't get lunch unless you take a bell by noon."

"I know, I know! You told us already!" Naruto yelled in frustration. "How am I supposed to fight as I'm starving to death!"

Naruto sat in his soggy clothes in annoyance as Kakashi casually read.

_Shit._ Kakashi must have gone really easy on me. He isn't even using a fraction of his energy now. I needed to come up with some sort of plan. Naruto was eating dust out there. How was Naruto supposed to be successful?

Naruto looked up at Kakashi with determination in his eyes. "I'm going to pass this test and not get sent back to the academy," Naruto declared, "Believe it!"

His demeanor shined how passionate he was about succeeding, even though at this point, it was highly implausible.

When it seemed hopeless, multiple shadow clones of the rash boy came jumping out of the water. The amount of clones he could make was incredible.

I struggled just to make one clone. Naruto may not have brain but he did have power. He might not be so bad of a fighter after all.

The determined clones charged at Kakashi. "You can't beat me with this jutsu, Naruto. You're still the worst student," Kakashi said, condescending.

After that moment, one of Naruto's clones jumped onto Kakashi's back!

"What?" Kakashi yelled. "He got me from behind?"

I couldn't help but be happy for the rambunctious boy. He was really trying to prove everyone, including myself, wrong.

The blues in his eyes sparkled with lush and excitement, "Didn't you say don't let your enemies get behind you? Good advice, Sensei. Believe it."

Shadow clones piled upon Kakashi, leaving him hardly visible as the sea of orange jumpsuits overpowered him.

"I am going to get a bell!" the real Naruto yelled as he ran towards Kakashi to throw a punch. With all the shadow clones pinning Kakashi down, it seemed like there was no way Kakashi could get out of this predicament.

"This is for nailing me in the butt earlier! You are mine and so are those bells!" Naruto screamed, finally gaining the upper-hand.

All hope was lost, however, when Naruto's fist somehow hit one of his shadow clones instead of Kakashi.

I was just as astonished as Naruto. _Where did Kakashi go?_

Naruto yelled something about the clone must be Kakashi in disguise and all the clones start pummeling each other, desperate to find him.

A mountain of Narutos were wailing on each other. Fists were flying, screams were heard, and hair was pulled. Knots of limbs entangled each other. Finally, Naruto realized that if he undid his jutsu, the real Kakashi will be the only one left. And lord behold us, when all the clones disappeared, left was just a very bumped and bruised boy.

I sighed in disappointment. _Never mind, Naruto is completely hopeless. He literally beat the shit out of himself._

If things couldn't get any worse, I saw the battered boy's eyes widen as he spotted something by the nearby tree.

_Is that a bell? Wait… Naruto!_

But shortly after, the Knucklehead fell for the trap as he grabbed the bell and a rope tied around his ankle and hung him from the tree. He was flaying and screaming.

Kakashi reappeared to grab the bell. Sighing, "Think before you use a jutsu or else your opponent might use it against you."

Naruto moaned.

"Oh," he continued, "And if the bait is obvious, don't take it. A ninja must see threw deception."

Kakashi disappeared as I heard, in a different direction, two sets of feet, followed by a girl's scream, which could only be from Sakura. Hesitant for a moment, I ran towards the sound. I might not be much help, but I can't just leave her.

Running from bush to bush, I slid behind a tree when I spotted both Kakashi and Sakura. Kakashi was forming some sort of hand seal as leaves flew around Sakura. She looked dazed, zombified. _I never seen something like this before._

Her eyes grew wide and she began to shake and screamed with fear. I tried to identify what she was so scared of but there was nothing surrounding her. It was as if she was stuck in an illusion.

"Shinobi battle skill number two, the illusion jutsu. Sakura studied it in class but she still couldn't see it coming," Kakashi said in pity with the book still in his grasps.

If this was an illusion jutsu like Kakashi said, then this could be an example of genjutsu.

Sakura screamed in fear again and passed out. Whatever she was seeing must be truly frightening. Kakashi was one cruel shinobi.

It was remarkable. Two members from Team 7 have been defeated and it wasn't even mid-morning. Naruto acted too rash and Sakura didn't act at all. If I wanted to suceed, I needed to be able to learn from these shinobis' mistakes.

Leaving Sakura, I sneaked through the scrubs and greenery in search of the last standing shinobi from Team 7.

Faint sounds of metal clashing caught my attention, so I stealthily followed the noise. Hiding, I witnessed Sasuke and Kakashi sparring it out.

Sasuke's movements, compared to Naruto's and Sakura's were out of this world. They were more calculated as he threw his weapons at the nonchalant ninja. Whenever Kakashi dodged the first attack, Sasuke would try to trick him with the next.

Sasuke's defensive skills were just as impressive. He preformed substitution clones whenever he was in a tight situation. He moved too fast for my eyes to track him.

Kakashi fought Sasuke without once glancing at his book, proving how much on a different level Sasuke was on. Kakashi didn't look like he was struggling, but you could tell he had all his attention aimed toward his quiet, yet powerful student.

At one point, Sasuke almost grabbed one of the bells. He used all his limbs to his advantage. With a kick and a punch, that didn't stop him from twisting his whole body mid-air, to build up speed for an additional kick from his other leg. Kakashi had to push him away to give distance. It was breath-taking.

"Well, you are different from the others. I'll grant you that," Kakashi said, pleased.

But, he still didn't look convinced. Sasuke was strong, but strong and witty enough to out-smart Kakashi?

Sasuke was not having it. He was far from done with this battle. The look of vengeance and rage screamed in his onyx eyes as he performed hand seals. Sasuke began to pull back, sucking in air, it seemed. I had no idea what he was doing.

But Kakashi did, "What!? Impossible! Genin can't do that, takes up too much chakra. There's no way!"

I never saw Kakashi so shocked before. He was _always_ either bored or bored, but never shocked.

Sasuke finally exhaled flames that licked of orange and yellow. He was blowing fire!

The inferno shot at Kakashi, swarming him to the point where I could no longer see him.

Chills ran up my spine. The pure power and intensity Sasuke possessed was immense. Fire breathing sounded like something you heard in fairy tales and make believe. I never expected shinobi were able to control this much potential. It was overwhelming.

The hell fire extinguished, leaving behind a massive crater and Kakashi was no where to be found.

_Where did he go?_

Sasuke wondered the same thing as he searched frantically for him. Looking above, in front and behind him, we both didn't know where Kakashi disappeared to.

A hand rocketed from the ground underneath Sasuke's feet. The undead had came back to life!

"I'm where you least suspect me," muffled the voice that was Kakashi's.

Sasuke's face grew with true terror has the undead sucked him into the Earth. His head perched above ground was all that remained of him.

Kakashi squatted in front of Sasuke's head. "Right under your feet. Earth style, Head Hunter jutsu."

Sasuke struggled to get out of the mole hole he was sucked into.

"Can't get out, can you?" Kakashi tisked. "That was ninjutsu, the third shinobi battle skill. You have talent and you were right, you are different from the others, but different isn't always better. They say the nail that sticks up is the one who gets hammered down."

With that, Kakashi disappeared, leaving a stuck and confused shinobi.

I walked out from my hiding spot with a look of confusion and shock. Sasuke looked up with total utter frustration.

"Ugh!" he yelled.

_You totally got yourself fucked there didn't you, buddy?_

At that moment, Sakura dashed past us. She woken up from the genjutsu. Almost missing us, she stopped short at the sight of Sasuke. She froze, unable to fathom that all that was left of Sasuke was a head.

"Sakura?" Sasuke questioned.

The realization hit her that that was indeed Sasuke and proceeded to scream and then faint.

_Oh, boy. Not again. It's not her day._

Sasuke and I looked at each other in disbelief, like _she_ was the one who was body-less.

Sighing, I walked over and fanned her with my notepad.

_Come on, Sakura. I need help getting Sasuke out of the ground. _

She came back to reality with a groan. "What happened?" she asked. "I could have sworn I saw Sasuke..." she said as she simultaneously rechecked her suspicions and behold, Sasuke was still a Whack-A-Mole.

"Sasuke!" She screamed. Her eyes were rolling to the back of her skull, ready to faint again.

_Oh, no you don't._

I grabbed her shoulders and shook her violently.

"Sakura! I'm alright but get me out of here," Sasuke called.

The voice of her love snapped her back to reality. The gears in her head began turning again.

"Oh, Sasuke!" she pushed me aside without showing any gratitude. I was completely invisible as she ran to Sasuke.

"What happened? Was this Sensei's doing?" She caressed his cheek. I sat in the dirt, left behind.

Sasuke knew actually what to say to Sakura. He could tell her to help him take over the world and she would oblige. "Yes. Now can you both help get me out of here! We don't have much time left," Sasuke said.

We helped Sasuke out of his dirt tomb. Sakura was so glad he was finally freed, she gave him a bear hug.

"You're okay, Sasuke. I was so worried." Her grip grew stronger.

"I'm fine. Let go of me!" Sasuke said. Annoyance tinged his voice as he tried the pry the love lust girl off his torso.

Reluctantly, she let him go. "Sasuke, come on. Kakashi-sensei is a _jonin_. There's no way we can defeat him. None of his students have been able to." She grabbed Sasuke's shoulders, "Let's just give up."

"I will _not _give up," he wrenched his arm away. "That will set me back from my goals. I'm an avenger. I need to destroy him."

I rolled my eyes. _He is so dramatic._

"If you want to give up, Sakura. Go ahead, but I'm not," Sasuke concluded.

Sakura looked hurt by his comment but she idolized every word. "Okay, Sasuke. Okay. But how would you get a bell?"

Sasuke, frustrated, ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't know. He is strong and we are not."

The three of us stood, contemplating how we could pull it off. But, truthfully, Sasuke was right. Kakashi was crazy strong and extremely skilled. How could any of us compete with that? Sasuke was by far the strongest, most capable of pulling it off and even he failed.

_Damn it, Kakashi._ I get you went super easy on me, but why do I have to do this stupid test again? Now that he stepped up his game a thousand-fold, how can I get a bell? There were only three bells and four fighters. I can't do it, I can't do it on my own.

_...on my own._

Kakashi said I had to retake it to pass a certain part I couldn't have done before. What if that was because I was on my own.

I stared at Sasuke and Sakura. They are just as baffled as I was. It suddenly clicked, it made sense now. The only difference between this test and the last was the fact that I wasn't alone this time.

I smacked my palm on my forehead.

_How could I have been so oblivious?_

None of us can defeat Kakashi alone, but _together_ we potentially could. It was highly unlikely, but that was what Kakashi was testing. If _we_ could do it.

Sasuke recognized the awareness of my expression. "What is it, Quorra?"

There was no time to explain. It was almost noon. I flagged them to follow me. We were going to need the Knucklehead for this.

* * *

Naruto was still hanging from the tree.

"Oh, hey guys," Naruto said, face red from the build up of blood to his head. "How's it hanging?"_  
_

He laughed at his own joke. "Get it? Hanging? 'Cause I'm upside-down, _hanging_?"

"Now's not the time for jokes," Sasuke scolded, cutting Naruto free. He fell with a thump. "Quorra has a plan to get the bells."

Naruto rubbed his head, "Geez, Sasuke. You could have warned me before you cut the rope."

Sasuke smirked, "Heads up, I'm freeing you, Loser."

"Oh, bother," Sakura said.

"So, what's this plan of your's, Quorra?" Naruto asked.

I reached in my pocket for my notepad to find the spot barren.

_Where did it... fuck._

I took it out to fan Sakura before and I must have left it there.

_Just my luck. There's no time to get it now._

Three paired of eyes stared at me in wonder.

I tried to act out what my plan was. Pointing at each of us, including myself, and comically made punching movement, to resemble us all fighting together.

"Wait," Naruto said, confused. "You want us to fight each other?"

My palm hit my forehead once again. At times like these, I really wished I had a voice.

I replayed a very theatrical game of charades with them.

"Punch a tree!" Naruto yelled. "No, no fight with air! Fight with air? Quorra, that won't work."

I hung my head in defeat. They don't understand me. I could crawl up in a hole right there.

_Teamwork, Naruto, you dunce! We need teamwork._

"Naruto, you dunce," Sasuke reprimanded. "She doesn't want us to fight each other, she wants us to fight together."

"You mean like teamwork," Sakura stated.

_Yes! Yes! Someone finally gets me._

I shook Sakura again, this time with glee and danced to demonstrate my happiness. My faith in humanity was restored.

"Well, Quorra. What's the plan?" Sasuke asked.

Team 7 looked at me, eagerness were in a form of flames behind their eyes.

They wanted a plan and I was happy to supply them with one.

* * *

**It didn't seem like Quorra and Team 7 were off to the right start but the gears are turning! What do you think the plan is?**

**I did not finish this chapter, but instead of being super late uploading it, I thought I would share the progress. Since there's not much left to the chapter, I'll upload the next chapter this Saturday instead of the following Saturday (which is what I usually do). Sorry about that! **

**On the plus side, I'm working on an interesting, original "mission-type" saga that will follow this. Very excite!**

**"Better never than late." -George Bernard Shaw**

**Reviews are love.**

**xo**


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